


Just a little Girl (english version)

by beatlegunner



Category: Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-12-17
Updated: 2016-02-01
Packaged: 2018-05-07 05:28:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,860
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5444939
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beatlegunner/pseuds/beatlegunner
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Hound had died.<br/>Baelish was planning the wedding between Sansa and Harry The Heir and she decided to finally run away. In her way to have a new life, she changes her name and meets a lot of people, but she also meets again with some from her old life as Sansa...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A new beggining

**Author's Note:**

> Hi. I have to say that my english is not very good and i tried my best with the translation.  
> But i hope you enjoy it as much as i enjoyed writing it.  
> :v

It was all prepared for the wedding between Sansa and Harry the Heir, but the event was being postponed each passing moon. ¿What was Littlefinger waiting to invalidate her last marriage with the gnome to after marry her with Harry?  
Maybe Lord Baelish didn't want to risk to ask the annulment to the High Sparrow, because the court or the queen could know and ruin everything - concluded Sansa -. Maybe he's just waiting for the new about Tyrion's death. Then all is gonna be easier.  
¿But was she disposed to marry again? Definitely no, she wasn't. Sometimes she wondered if someone should have marry her for love. but the only thing she found was people who just searched her titles, or just harm her.  
Howerever, all she wanted was being free, free as a bird. She wanted to fly to far places, far of everyone who wanted to harm her. ¿How could she be free of that engagement if everyone she loved have died? Even that cruel and disgusting man, The Hound, had died.  
One day, Littlefinger had heard a rumour from an island near the Trident. Some people said that one of the Clegane brothers, the youngest one, had looted and destroyed a town near Salinas, and then had raped a little girl of 12 years old. But after that a tall knight with an old armour appeared and killed him while they fought...  
If that would've been true, it would've been a completely irony - thought Sansa -, because the Hound hated knights.  
The new about the events had been heard for almost all Westeros and even commented in the most disreputable brothel. But yet, Sansa Stark didn't believe that a man like the Hound, despite his cruel and acid personality, could do a thing so inmoral and ruthless like that. It wasn't in his essence.  
It seemed had been years ago that time that Sandor had told her the story behind his scar, or why he hated so much the knights with shiny armours.  
The day that Sansa couldn't bear Littlefinger's obscenes treatments anymore finally came. Sitting on his lap and stand his kisses with his mint smell made the bile going up to her throat. Also, the death of Sweet Robin troubled Sansa and it made her take a premeditated decision.  
The following night she prepared her clothes and some things useful for her escape. She changed her dress for one of coarse thread. She put on a dark cloak and took a knife that she saved in her room. She went to Myranda Royce and then after to Mya Stone to say goodbye.  
Leaving the Vale of Arryn was almost a relief for Sansa. She wasn't Alayne Stone anymore, she was the regicide wolf... or even no one. Being no one was better than being a fugitive that was valued in millions of gold.  
She took a horse from the Royce's barn, Myranda helped her without problem. And then she went out from the Vale.  
Sansa had been riding her horse almost all the night, enough to no one found her for 8 hours after the dawn.  
¿What would they they think when they see that i am gone? - she wondered - ¿Have I ruined Petyr's plans? - she was amused about the last thought.  
After a few minutes se stopped to eat some cheese and an apple. She slept about three hours and then began to ride again where the destiny took her. North or south. East or West... From her point of view it was all the same, there will always be bad people who wanted to harm her, wherever she went. ¿Will the Manderlys still be loyal to the Starks and to the North or will they have surrendered to the Iron throne? When she was in the Vale and Lord Baelish got a new, there wasn't any about the Manderly familiy, there were only ones about the Freys, Boltons, Lannisters... and of course, the rumour abour Sandor Clegane's death. Maybe i should go to White harbour - she thought -. I won't lose anything. From now I am no one and i nothing valuable: only the title of a land in ruins. She was riding her horse slowly on the kingsroad when she listened to a group of people who were coming close to her. She listened a lot of people talking and a lot of galloping horses. It's a caravan - she thought. Suddenly, she heard a horse coming close to her and then the voice of a man who began to speak with her. She didn't want to talk to anyone, she only wanted to escape, but then she remembered she had to use her manners. - Excuse me, m'lady - said the voice. Sansa turned around her head and saw an old man with a thick moustache and brown hair with some grey hair - It's too dangerous for a little girl like you being in this road alone. There are too many outlaws out here and we wouldn't like to see another girl killed. - And who are you? - she asked suspicious. I cannot trust anyone now. That has given me many problems since i came to the south. I musn't trust - she said in her head. - Some people call me Whiskers or the lord of the donkeys. But my mother used to called me Casimir. Casimir Rivers. Rivers. - That is a bastard name... - I also was the squire of a shitty man that was my uncle and, thanks to the Seven, he died a long time ago. But that doesn't mean nothing to people when they get to know that one is a Rivers or a Snow, or a Storm or a Sand. All bastards are treated weird once people get to know it - said the old man with a enigmatic smile and a amused look in his eyes that gave her trust. She knew very well of that thing about the bastardy. She live like Alayne Stone and se knew the difference. And also, she understood how his brother, Jon Snow, felt all his life with the contempt of Lady Catelyn and having to live in the shadows, basically. - ¿May I ask yours? - My name - she said. But, ¿who shall she be now? She had a lot of names in her head and she couldn't choose any of them. ¿When will this farce end so i could be me again? Maybe never -. Uh, i am... Nymeria.  
Suddenly, the image of her sister came to her mind: a girl with a messy hair and her direwolf named Nymeria. Sometimes she wondered what had happened to them. She wondered if they finally met and now they are running together into the woods of Winterfell. Then she remembered Lady, the direwolf she had until the queen ordered to her father to kill her. ¿Will I saw you when I die? – Sansa thought with melancholy - ¿Or have you disappear forever?  
\- Ah! like the Dornish princess. It’s a beautiful name…  
\- ¿And where are yo going to? – asked the Stark girl.   
Maybe I could travel with them, so the travel won’t be too bored.  
\- To the South. We are going to Dorne – replied the man.  
To the South? – she thought – I can’t go to the South. The queen could find me… I wanted to go to White Harbour…   
\- Why? You want to join us? – asked the man named Casimir.  
Sansa had to think about it. The image of Cersei came to her mind: her cold and chaotic green eyes like wildfire, her straight and proud posture, and her thick lips which made her remember Joffrey ‘s lips as well. That memory made her shiver.  
\- Yes – she heard herself say. Maybe it won’t be a problem. Maybe she won’t find me with all these people around –. May a travel with you?  
\- Of course – replied Casimir with a smile and a friendly look – Everyone is free to be with us in this crossing. And the ones who join to the caravan join to a big family as well – he added. The old man began to stop and ten turned around to face the rest of the caravan who follow them – Dear friends of mine, we have to welcome to the new member of our family. ¡Welcome little Nymeria!  
Women and men, old people and kids exclaimed with such enthusiasm that Sansa felt her heart being pressed against her chest.   
A family…  
The twilight of that day painted orange and grey the sky of the Trident. They have been travelling all day and were waiting to nightfall to make a wood fire and sleep between the trees. Casimir looked concentrate and lost in his thoughts and Sansa felt curious about his past.  
\- My Lord…  
\- I am no Lord – he replied with a husky voice. That, for some reason, made her remember Sandor Clegane –. I have told you my name and my surnames. Be free to choose one of them.  
\- Alright… Whiskers – that made the old man smile and she smiled as well – Where are you from?   
\- We came from many places. Ones from the North and others from the South, ones from the Summer isles and others from the free cities of Essos… Even from beyond the wall.  
\- Beyond the wall? – she was shocked – But then they are… savages – Sansa began to feel uncomfortable ¿How could the nightwatchers let those beasts pass the barrier? – she thought in that moment.  
\- Savages not so savages – he corrected her – One doesn’t have to generalize the stereotypes. The are some free people more friendly than others, and even with more manners than most of us. If you think well, the only difference between them and us is that they were from the other side when our ancestors raised the Wall.   
In our family, some of the members are from the other side of the Wall and let me tell you that the stories about enchanted woods and the Lands of always Winter are very interesting – replied the man and made Sansa shut the fuck up so she could stop saying shit about the free people.  
\- We are approaching to Saltpans – said the old man later – We have to supply ourselves with food and drinks, we can’t just survive of eating rabbits and unripe fruit.  
\- But is too dangeous – said a woman with a pitched voice who was behind the old man – I heard there were too many outlaws frome the Brotherhood Without Banners attacking towns near there, and there is the Hound of the Lannisters as well.  
The woman was from Oldstones and heard the same rumour as Petyr a few weeks ago.  
\- I don’t think is dangerous – she heard herself say – I am sure is not.  
\- You don’t think is dangerous go there? – asked her angrily the woman – Are you mad, girl?  
\- Janine… - said the man trying to stop her.  
\- No, you misunderstand me – replied Sansa – What I was trying to say is that I don’t think that Sandor Clegane is dangerous. He is not like his brother.  
\- You talk about him like if you have known him.  
\- Something like that.  
\- Would you like to tell me how…?  
\- Maybe in another occasion I’ll tell you – she answered and finished the conversation. She kept looking straight at the road and Casimir did the same with always smiling at her.  
After two days of travel they passed near Salt pans but they didn’t stop there. Sansa wondered where they were going to, because they kept going to the East, so she decided to ask the old man.  
\- We are going to the Quiet isle – he replied doing a little smile – I have a friend there, a monk, he can help us with the food and the lodging for some nights. Then we will go to the South.  
The Quiet isle was near the river mouth of the river where the three Forks get together and make one Fork. The isle wasn’t very big, but there were many people. There were more monks than peasants, and there were no knights around. It was calm and quiet, as its name. The novice monks had to do a vow of silence for an exact amount of years, that’s why when they arrived there, the monks welcomed them with a friendly gesture and kept doing their chores.  
They went to a little Sept. Casimir knocked the door, but no one answered, so he had to wait for his friend there. After a few minutes came a man with a hood on, he had a fruit basket in the hands and another with vegetables on his back, but when he saw the old Whiskers he let both baskets on the ground and approached to him to greet him.  
\- Cas! Old Cas! – he exclaimed with enthusiasm – What a pleasure to see you here!  
\- It’s been years, Elder brother.  
\- You are right, my friend… So tell me, what can I help you?  
\- Supplies, lodging…  
\- Quiet, don’t say anything else. Of course I will do it. It’s a rule of hospitality. Come in and be comfortable… Always is a pleasure to receive new faces. We don’t see many people in here.  
The old Casimir Rivers talked all the afternoon with the Elder brother, while the rest of the caravan separate in different parts: Some went to know the isle, while others stayed to rest or ate. Sansa decided to know the isle and went with the first group. She went to the harbor to admire the sea... she wanted to sail in the sea and know places far away from Westeros, she wanted to be far away the Seven Kingdoms and know the free cities. She also walked in the isle and on the hills. Then when she came back where the caravan was, in the distance she saw a big man, bigger than Lothor Brune. That man had a pointy hood like the other monks, but he also had a shovel in his right hand; and while he walked she could see that his left leg was lame. Suddenly she saw that the big monk putting his look on her, and then she noticed she was looking at him a long time ago. This is so embarrassing! – she thought – I am acting like a silly little girl again.   
Then quickly she turned around and went where the old Whiskers was.  
\- I thought you would never come. You have lost dinner.  
\- I went to tour around the place. I had so much curiosity… - she said with a voice that sounded like she was apologizing. She felt like a silly girl after all, she had almost fifteen years old.  
\- I am not scolding you – said Rivers smiling like always – Here is your food, I was saving it for you.  
Sansa took the plate and ate: it was a soup of vegetables and mushrooms. The old Cas had a plate of food for him as well and began to eat at the same time as Sansa.   
He waited me for dinner – she said to herself. Sansa felt that Casimir was like the grandfather or the old uncle that she never knew. She felt great affection for the old man, even that she didn’t know him very well. She hadn’t felt like that a long time ago, not since she got affectionate to the cynical smiles of Joffrey and Cersei… But the old Cas was different, he was not a Lannister.  
Sansa began to tell him about the things she saw and what discovered in the isle. She told him about the sea and the reflection she made about wanting to fly and about going to Essos to travel to the free cities to Asshai. Suddenly she mentioned that thing about the monk with the shovel, that thing highlight his curiosity and let him thinking a few seconds.  
\- He must be a gravedigger – she replied finally – Sometimes there are like one or two monks who have that chore, in generally they are novices. They have the chore of bury every dead man to let them rest in peace. Sometimes when there are battles or wars the Brothers order to these gravediggers to bury. They are like silent sisters but with dicks.  
\- Have you seen many of them in your time as squire?  
\- No – he replied with a little of melancholy in his voice – I did saw many corpses. The gravediggers come later when the knights leave the battlefield, that’s why I haven’t had the chance to see many.  
The light of the camp fire made old Cas eyes shine because of that memory. His look was lost in the fire but after a few seconds that melancholic face changed for a calmed one and looked at Sansa.   
\- Now I see that your hair is not really brown – he suddenly said.  
My hair! – she remembered. She hadn’t the herbs that colored her hair anymore, that’s why he could see her auburn roots and people could notice her Tully features. But then she remembered who she was talking about, it was the old Cas… She didn’t believe he would sell her to the queen if she told him who she really was. He was a decent man even though he was an errant bastard, a lot of people would call him an outlaw but she knew he wasn’t.  
\- Well, I am going to sleep now – the old man got up and approach to Sansa and kissed her in the forehead – Good night, little girl.  
That night she slept looking at the stars through the window of the bedroom the Elder Brother gave her. She dreamt about Lady and the Winterfell woods. She dreamt about a bloody coat and a kiss that never happened.  
The next morning she woke up in the dawn and saw that the old Cas was sitting in front the same window where she was looking at the stars at night.  
\- What’s wrong? – she asked him, a little confuse – What happened?  
\- Nothing at all – he replied, and made a little smile – I woke up earlier to help the Elder Brother in some chores. We were talking a lot… And I wanted to come to see if you needed anything but you were still asleep. Did you know you talk while you sleep? – Casimir laugh and then got up – The Elder Brother told me to ask to if you wanted to go to walk with him. He wanted to talk with you.  
With me? – she thought – why?  
\- Alright. I’ll go when I dress up.  
\- Understood – the man turned around before he opened the door and looked at Sansa one more time – Little girl, may I ask you something? – she nodded – What is that thing about a bloody coat?  
There was a silent in the room. He looked at her with softness while she was trying to remember the last dream she had: it was the night of the Blackwater battle, where the wildfire colored the sky and her room smelled of puke and blood, because the shape of a scared man came for her help.  
\- Maybe I will tell you in another occasion, old Cas – he just smiled like if he knew the true behind that sentence, like if both of them shared a secret. Then he finally opened the door and went out to let Sansa dress up.  
She changed immediately and went to the Elder Brother. The old monk was talking with a group of kids. All of them were listening to him like if he were teaching them something new. Between them there was that gravedigger she saw last night. When the Elder Brother saw Sansa he approached to her and asked her to go for a walk.  
\- I am afraid we didn’t introduced ourselves personally – he said. The man had no saint appearance; he looked like a tough man. Also, he didn’t look too old to be an Elder Brother, he was too young, and he might be 40 years old.  
\- Oh, yes. My apologies – she interrupted him – I am… Nymeria.  
\- Nymeria – he said again – Alright little girl. Casimir told me wonderful things about young. He told me you were very gently and sweet – that made her blush, it was a long time ago since someone flatter her selflessly… people always wanted to gain something: friendship, trust; but all those people were the ones from noble families who knew who she was. However, being no one made all easier, things felt more real.  
\- Thank you very much, Elder Brother.  
\- He also told me that you both met near the Trident, am I right?  
\- Well, yes – that question made her feel a sort of uncomfortable.  
\- Ah – the monk sighed – May I ask you where are you from?  
\- I come from… uh… - a lot of places came to her mind – I came from the Greywater Watch.  
For some reason she remembered Old Nan and her stories about the crannongmen who lived in swamps and ate frogs. The Old Nan described them as small and evil creatures; she also said that they had green and scaly skin like cocodriles.  
\- Ah – he said again – but you don’t look like a crannongman.  
\- That’s because I have my mother features… she was from Oldstones.  
\- I see… - he said – And what were you doing travelling alone in the Kingsroad? Where are your parents?  
\- They were killed. They were killed by the lions, the ones with two legs – and that was not a lie, her family was killed by the Lannisters after all. – I did not have anyone else, so I decided to escape.  
\- I see – said the Elder Brother.  
After the talk, Sansa walked the small beach that was there in the isle. The sand was wet and the water was cold, but felt nice. Once that the sun was set she decided to come back where the caravan was. It was all dark and there were no many people in the street, because it was time for dinner. She could not see any monk or novices, so she went to the dinner room. She climbed the hill and passed near the byre where she could hear a horse neigh. She stopped. She had curiosity about what was happening with that horse, so she decided to approach there and saw that the animal was eating its food. She turned around and decided to come back, but she felt something behind her back and then she heard heavy footsteps approaching.  
\- My apologies if I had interrupted you – said Sansa after she turned around to look who was there.  
\- It seems that the little bird hasn’t learned and keeps using her fake politeness – she heard a harsh voice say.  
Her heart stopped for a second.   
It’s not possible – she thought – It’s not possible!  
Sansa was paralyzed while the man with the harsh voice was coming near to her.  
\- What happened? – the man stopped a few centimeters from her and took off his coat – The little bird finally got out from her cage?  
\- The gravedigger was you – she said. Those cruel grey eyes didn’t have the hate they had before, now they looked more peaceful; and his face looked the same, but with longer hair.  
\- Something like that – was the only thing she could say after looking at him a very long time.  
\- The little bird doesn’t shiver when she sees me anymore – Sansa felt relieved when she saw him. Even if it was weird, she felt happy to see him again – Don’t you frighten when you see my ugly face anymore?  
His face was the same, and his scar was red and wrinkled as always.  
\- I was never frightened of your face.  
\- Then what was it? My gallantry? – he laughed ironically.  
\- No – she replied – It was your eyes… they were always full of rage.  
He didn’t say anything else and then he went out the byre and Sansa went out behind him.


	2. If you don't know it, it can't kill you

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sansa receives new information.   
> May this change her new vision about some things?

The next day Casimir told them that they would travel that morning to the South. They ate bread, cheese, fruit and some red wine for breakfast. Sansa was sitting next to the old Cas, who was talking with the Elder Brother while they were drinking wine.  
\- Last night a received a new, more like a rumor – said the Elder Brother – Someone told me that Riverrun was under siege and Brynden Tully escaped once the Lannisters took the castle-  
\- Really? And how did he do it? – asked Cas.  
\- Some people say h escaped by the river – commented someone – Some assholes believe that he became a trout and swam by the Fork.  
\- Don’t be so credulous, Gasper – said the old Cas – Maybe he escaped by the river but he didn’t became a fish – then he talked to the Elder Brother – Well, although he could escape, I don’t believe that he did it because he was a coward, I think he had no other choice. The Black Fish was very stubborn.  
\- Did you know him? – asked Sansa with curiosity – You talk like if you knew him.  
\- Well, I did. We met in a battle fought a long time ago. Before you were born, little girl. The Black Fish didn’t stop fighting and he always wanted to win – the last thing said made him smile a little – What a time…  
\- I also received another new, is about Jaime Lannister – said the Elder Brother.  
\- What good could be a new about the kingslayer? – said Cas letting go a sigh.  
\- Well, someone told me he was looking for Sansa Stark…  
\- The gnome’s wife? I thought she went to the East. If I was her I would have went far away from that mad queen.  
The Elder Brother nodded.  
\- The thing is that he is not looking for the girl because of her sister, the Queen, but for an oath; he wanted to clean his honor doing a good action. Also, he is travelling with a strong and brave woman, Lady Brienne, the Maid of Tarth. She is a good woman, I had the chance to know her once when Sept Meribald came here.  
\- And why are they still looking for her? – Sansa decided to ask. The Elder Brother looked at her weird – It is absurd, the Stark girl might be dead.  
\- An oath – he replied – They made an oath to her mother, Lady Catelyn. Brienne told me everything that day she confessed me her sins to absolve her. She and Ser Jaime promised to Lady Stark that they would return both of her daughters to her, but all was ruined because of the Red wedding and King Joffrey’s death.  
Sansa wasn’t hungry anymore. She had many things in her mind and that was enough. The Elder Brother told the old Cas about a Stoneheart woman, people said she was a merciless woman who was with the Botherhood Without Banners. She got up from the table and gave thanks to the Elder Brother, and then she began to walk from one side of the room. The novices were standing near the wall with a jar of wine in their hands still as irons; Sansa was walking fast and look quickly at the room. Suddenly her blue eyes crossed with some grey ones that were from the other side of the room. When she went out she felt more relieved. She felt how the fresh morning breeze and the humid smell of the grass and the soil filled her lungs.  
Sansa was sitting in the shadows under a tree with her eyes closed. Suddenly she felt some footsteps that were approaching to her, and sounded a little weird. First she thought it was Cas, but when she turned around she noticed he was taller and had a brown robe.  
\- What are you doing here? – she asked.  
\- You went out from the dining room with a strange face, little bird.  
\- So what? You shouldn’t care about how is my face.  
He was silent. He approached to her limping and stayed by her side, but he didn’t sit.  
\- What happened to your leg? – she decided to ask. He just snorted and didn’t replied after a few seconds.  
\- I was injured in a fight…  
\- I do not doubt it – she said. He laugh and kept talking  
\- We were at an inn near Salt pans and we met some men who were under my brother’s orders… From her dirty tongues I was told that you married the imp, little bird. And that you killed Joff.  
There was an awkward silence. She didn’t know, but it was strange. Clegane told her that with bitterness in his voice, she noticed it. Why was he telling her that?  
\- “We were”? – she suddenly asked him – You were not traveling alone?  
\- No – he replied dryly. There was a cold silence, she was curious but she was frightened of asking him with whom. Then, Sandor Clegane sighed and he left her there.  
Casimir was preparing the stuff to begin the travel, he was collecting the supplies and called the caravan to get together. The Elder Brother called Sansa to talk something important before they travel to the South. They walked near the tree she went before and sat on a seat that was near there. They kept a few seconds saying nothing, the Elder Brother had his eyes closed like if he could understand the secret language of the wind which was blowing heavily that day. The monk’s cloth and Sansa’s hair were shaking at the same time as the wind. The force of the wind was getting stronger, so she decided to finish with the awkward silence.  
\- Why did you call me?  
\- What do you think? – he replied – To talk, sweet child.  
\- About what?  
\- About you… and your sister – he said.  
My sister? No…  
\- I am afraid I don’t know what you are talking about, Elder Brother.  
\- You know what I am talking about – he said with a serene voice, then he sighed – The novice gravedigger, Sandor Clegane, he told me everything that day I found him in the riverlands… And he saw you here with the old Cas, he told me immediately, Lady Sansa.  
Sansa felt naked for a second, the fact that a unknown man said her name outloud was frightening, she felt that in any second the queen’s men would come and would sentence her to death for regicide. But she knew how to stay calm-  
\- Accept my apologies for lying to you…  
\- You don’t have to apologize – said the monk – The only entity that can judge humanity are the Gods, my child – she nodded in agreement.  
\- And what were you going to tell me about… about Arya?  
\- For all we know, your sister was alive when I found Sandor in the Riverlands. She left him dying near a river and went to Salt pans. She probably took a ship in there, but we don’t know if she keeps alive… I am sorry but I can’t give you more information, Lady Stark.  
The wildness of the wind stopped and the place was calm again. They could hear the little birds flying in the sky while singing their song.  
I can’t believe it – she thought – Arya was dead. She died the same day as our father when they beheaded him. They told me that…  
\- And she was with the H… with Sandor Clegane all the time? – she asked.  
\- No. Sandor told me he took her from the Brotherhood Without Banners. At first was for the reward that the young King of the North would give him for the rescue, but after the Red Wedding and Lysa Arryn’s death he didn’t want to leave her with no one. He thought she wouldn’t be safe anywhere, that’s why they stayed together all the time until Arya Stark left him.  
The entire story said by the Elder Brother was impossible to believe. She believe that her little sister was dead all the time and all returned to Sandor Clegane again, who kept her sister by his side until the end.   
Arya, have you returned to the North, to Winterfell to see the ruin that has become? Or have you stayed wandering in the sea? – she said in her mind.  
A few hours later, when the sun had set in the middle of the sky, they all were ready to go. Casimir led the caravan and began to going down the hill. Sansa was by his side riding her light brown horse and talking about ordinary stuff. She asked the old Cas if he could wait for her a moment and he nodded. Sansa approached to the gravedigger as near as she could and then she dismounted the horse.   
\- The little bird is going to fly again – he said.  
\- Yes. And this might be the last time we see each other, Ser – that last thing didn’t mind him, he just made a little smile barely visible.  
\- Where are you going to?   
\- To the South – she said. Sandor Clegane’s face went tough and dark – But you don’t have to worry. We are not going to pass for King’s landing, we will take another road. Then we will arrive in Old Town – she said with a smile. Sandor’s face kept tough but not too worried.  
\- Have a nice trip, little bird – finally said the novice.  
\- Thank you – she nodded and then turned around to mount her horse, but she looked at Clegane again – And thanks about Arya. Although it was not a good thing at the beginning you decided to take care of her when she had no one else – Sandor Clegane’s face had no expression, he just laughed ironically and nodded. Then he raised his hand and waved it saiying farewell. She went back with the old Cas and looked a few times where Clegane was but the last time she did it the gravedigger wasn’t there anymore.  
They kept traveling going to the South and then to the East. They passed near Harrenhal. The castle was one of the biggest and cursed ones in all Westeros. They surround the river that surrounded the Isle of Faces and beyond the Stoney sept, until the limit between the Reach, the Riverlands and the Westerlands, the Lannister’s territory.  
After we pass the limit there won’t be any more Lannisters who want to take me – thought Sansa.


	3. The Hound's death

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Hound's death and Sandor's new life

Sandor’s POV

Sandor’s wound was infected and he felt weaker each hour passed, his movements were clumsy and weak. There was a moment where he could not handle it anymore and fell off his saddle; he didn’t try to get up, he just dragged himself into a tree and leaned on the trunk. He was thirsty and suffered an intense pain, Arya got him some water but it tasted like mud, then he fell into a feverish sleep. He dreamt with green fire and pools of blood, he dreamt with death and with singing little birds. But, suddenly he felt that someone was calling his name, so he opened his eyes. He saw the Stark girl in front of him clutching her little sword, the pain was so strong that he didn’t care about what was she trying to do.  
\- Do you remember where the heart is? – he asked in a husky whisper. The girl was still, like stone. He was done with the constant pain and he just wanted to get away from it.  
\- I… just was… - the girl hesitate.  
\- Don’t lie! – he growled – I hate liars. I hate coward liars even more. Come on. Do it – he realized that she was going to do it so he squinted his eyes and began to provoke her – I killed your friend, the butcher’s son. I cut him in half and laughed – he was sobbing, and he wondered if it was because of the wound – And the little bird, your sister, your pretty sister… I was there, with my white cloak and let them beat her. I took the fucking song, she never gave it. I should have taken her. I should have fucked her bloody, I should have ripped her heart off before leaving her for the imp – a spasm of pain made his face twist – What do you want, she-wolf? Do you want me to beg? Come on! The gift of mercy… Revenge your friend Michael…  
\- Mycah – she said and got away from him – You don’t deserve the gift of mercy.  
The Hound looked at her when she saddled the horse. He didn’t try to get up to stop her.  
\- A true wolf would kill off a wounded animal – he said while mounted the horse.  
\- You shouldn’t have hit me with the axe – she said – You should have saved my mother.  
She turned around the horse and went away without looking back.

Clegane didn’t know if had passed days or hours after the abandonment of the she-wolf. He cursed her a thousand times for leaving him there agonizing and not giving him the gift of mercy. The pain intensified as the time passed and he felt he was dying slowly. After he fainted and woke up because of the singing bird, the Hound felt that his time had come, and the only thing he could think in that moment was trying to imagine her face one last time. He saw her there, with a porcelain innocent face; with that enigmatic look she gave him that time when he first demanded his song… That was the last thing he saw before he fell into the darkness.   
It seemed to be a dream. She was there looking at him and he couldn’t believe it, there was a mist around them and he couldn’t see anything, but she emanated the light that allowed him to see her.  
\- I want my song, little bird – he said. She looked at him fearless, without disgust, like he always thought she looked at him; she had a tender look and full of sweetness. She sang the Hymn of the Mother, and her sweet voice provoked that Sandor began to weep.  
But then he woke up, sobbing, and saw there was a man by his side. He could barely speak, he wanted to ask him who he was and what was he doing there, but he couldn’t say any word.  
\- Don’t worry, Sandor – that took him for surprise – I am here to help you. I am the Elder Brother from the Quiet Isle – said the man while healing his wounds. The wounds emanated a rotten smell and began to smell like a corpse, but the Elder Brother seemed that he couldn’t feel it. After some hours the wounds began to cicatrize and to stink less, and Sandor started to feel less sick.  
\- So tell me, Sandor Clegane. Tell me your story – asked the Elder Brother. Then Sandor told him everything, from the burn of his face to the abandonment of the Stark girl – I see…  
\- ¿Why did you save me, monk? – asked Clegane with a husky voice.  
\- ¿You don’t think you deserve to be saved?  
\- No. Absolutely no – he snorted.  
\- This is your second life, son. The Gods want you to have a second opportunity.  
\- There are no Gods, monk – he didn’t believe in Gods, but he thought it was strange that salvation in a far place like there – And don’t give me that “saint” crap speech. The Gods’ plan for me… It’s all a big fucking lie. You know what’s real? People, killers, monsters, rapists, that’s real… Do you really think that any God could allow that? – said Sandor. The monk went silent for a moment, he was trying to meditate his words and was analyzing what Clegane said.  
\- You know? I hear you and I feel nothing but pain inside you. I can feel you guilt, your anger, your confusion, Sandor… But you can heal yourself if you come with me, in the Quiet isle you can heal. We all were healed there. You will be in peace – said the Elder Brother. Sandor didn’t know what to say in this situation, he always knew what to say but this time he unknown himself. He was weak and had no money to survive; he didn’t know what was going to happen to him. For a moment he thought in following the man, but he wasn’t really sure – Do you want me to kill the Hound and let Sandor live?  
\- Do as you wish – said Clegane.  
The Elder Brother took a shovel that was in his cart behind the horse and began to dig a grave. He took the dented armor of the Hound and his sword and put them in the grave, and then he covered the grave again. And when he finished, the monk took the Hound’s helmet and put it above the grave.  
\- It’s done. The Hound had died. Now let Sandor rest.  
The Elder Brother and Sandor Clegane left that place and went to the Quiet Isle. In the journey, the monk spoke with Clegane like if they were almost friends, while Sandor spoke almost nothing and he snorted every time.  
\- You know? I had the same luck as you. I was given a second opportunity and a lived it following the faith of the Seven. You know? I fought in the battle of the Trident in favor of the Prince Rhaegar; I fainted because I had several injuries and fell to the river, and when i woke up I was in the Quiet isle and the Elder Brother of that time received me. It might be said that I died in the Trident and then reborn in the isle… Like the Hound, don’t you think? – he laughed a few seconds and then the silence reigned between both.


	4. Memories from the past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the little bird is back :v

Sandor’s POV

 

The Quiet isle was a place with Green areas; it had thick mudflats that surrounded the island. They arrived at a barn with a thatched roof and left Stranger in there. The Elder Brother took Sandor to a bedroom to let him rest; it was a bedroom for novices of the Faith.

\- From today you will be a novice – said the monk – Novices make a vote of silence and they are allowed to speak one day a week, but they can talk to me whenever they want… - he gave Sandor a novice hood, it was light brown and very big.

Sandor didn’t want to start a pointless discussion, so he did not say anything and took the clothes.

The next day the Elder Brother gave him a shovel and a new task: from that day he would be the new gravedigger from the isle. And so he began his task.

One day, while he dug some graves for the dead, he saw that the Elder Brother was with an old man and a big crowd. He complained at himself. That black half-breed dog that lived in the monastery came near to him wagging his tale and he ducked to pet him. He liked that dog and for some reason it made him remember when he was a little boy, when he was innocent and ignorant about life.

The night was coming and he was still in the hill. He had the shovel in his left hand and used it to lean on because of his lame leg. He was admiring the sun; Sandor never paid attention to the nature’s little things like a sunset, he admired it until the darkness fell. In the distance, under the hill, he saw a girl with dark hair who was looking at him with curious eyes; he was wearing his hood which only showed his eyes, so the girl couldn’t see him very well. After a few seconds the girl realized that he was looking at her as well so she turned around and walked back to the monastery. For some reason she looked familiar, she had a porcelain face and dark long hair, but she was too far so he couldn’t see her very well.

After a few minutes he went back to the monastery. On the road he saw the girl who was watching him before, but this time she was closer so he could see her in detail: she had the porcelain face he thought he saw before, high cheekbones and a graceful body, but the thing that caught his attention was her eyes, she had the vivid blue eyes he saw some time in his past life. It was her. He went to the Elder Brother immediately and told him what he saw.

\- Do you want to go to talk to her? – asked the monk – You know you have pending business, I know it even if you hadn’t told me explicitly – Sandor didn’t say a word and the monk took it as an affirmation, he smiled softly and went to the door – Tomorrow I’ll speak with her.

Did he really want to see her after all this time? He remembered the last time they saw each other, it was a blurred memory but he remembered: he went to her bedroom, he was tormented and too drunk; he asked the girl to escape with him but she did not accept. Sometimes he thought why the little bird had declined his offer, and the only thing that came to his mind was: _Why would she go with you? You are a disgusting monster. She is scared of your face as well of staying her in King’s landing, both options would have ended the little innocence that she still has._ Now he wondered how she would react to seeing him again. _Would I still frighten her?_

The next day he avoided her as much as he could and waited the Elder Brother. The monk told him the lie that the Stark girl told him and the novice snorted as always. _It seems you sing your own song now_ – he thought.

The night came and Sandor went to the barn to see his horse, Stranger. The neigh of the horse could be heard from far and so he hurried up as much as his lame leg let him. When he entered he gave food and water to him and then he left. Outside he saw that the blue eyed girl peep out of the window and was watching his horse, then he took advantage of the moment and put himself behind her.

\- My apologies if I interrupted you – apologized the girl after she turned around.

\- It seems that the little bird hasn’t learned and keeps using her fake politeness – said Clegane, her blue eyes stuck on him and went bigger of astonishment… ¿or it was fear? He didn’t know it – What happened? – the novice stopped a few centimeters from her and took of his hood – The little bird finally got out from her cage?

\- The gravedigger – she said after looking at him with more attention – it was you.

\- Something like that – was the only thing he could say after looking at her a few seconds – The little bird doesn’t shiver when she sees me anymore – said Sandor – Don’t you frighten when you see my ugly face anymore?

\- I was never frightened of your face.

\- Then what was it? My gallantry? – he laughed ironically.

\- No – she replied – it was your eyes… they were always full of rage.

That left him without words, he acknowledge himself one more time, then he left the place and went back to the monastery.


End file.
